1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a computer and a power source, and more particularly to a portable computer to be driven by a specific battery pack or ordinary batteries.
2. Related Art
Computer systems are information handling systems that are utilized by many individuals and businesses today. A computer system can be defined as a microcomputer that includes a central processing unit (CPU) component in combination with some or all of the following additional components: a volatile memory, a non-volatile memory such as read only memory (ROM), a display monitor, a keyboard or keypad, a mouse or other input device such as a trackball, a floppy diskette drive, a compact disc-read only memory (CD-ROM) drive, a modem, a hard disk storage device, and a printer. A computer system's main board, which is a printed circuit board known as a motherboard, is used to electrically connect the above-referenced components together. A computer system can be a desktop computer, a personal computer, a portable computer such as a notebook computer or palm-sized computer, or other type of computer.
A small portable computer which can fit in a pocket can be a wallet personal computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a hand-held personal computer (HPC), a palm-sized computer, or other portable computer. Such small, palm-sized computers are becoming more popular because the small size makes them more portable than medium-sized notebook computers.
Such palm-sized computers are usually driven by a portable power supply with a limited capacity such as a rechargeable battery. The consumed battery should be replaced by a new one or recharged. Generally, I have found that a rechargeable battery pack specifically designed for use in one particular type of computer cannot be used with other types of computers. In other words, such a specific rechargeable battery pack is not compatible with other types of computers.
I have found that certain sizes and incompatibilities of battery packs and batteries can make a portable computer inconvenient to use. Efforts have been made to improve battery pack structures and batteries.
One exemplar recent efforts in the art is U.S. Pat. No. 5,670,267 for BATTERY STORAGE PACK ADAPTER FOR A PORTABLE COMPUTER issued to Lee. In particular, the aforementioned Lee '267 proposed an additional battery casing for mounting ordinary batteries in a portable computer. However, the additional battery casing adversely affects miniaturization of the portable computer. In other words, the additional battery casing prevents a certain reduction in size of the portable computer.
Additional exemplars of recent efforts in the art include U.S. Pat. No. 5,028,806 for BATTERY REPLACEMENT SYSTEM FOR BATTERY-POWERED DIGITAL DATA HANDLING DEVICES issued to Stewart et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,149,604 for BATTERY ACCOMMODATING STRUCTURE issued to Nakanishi, U.S. Pat. No. 5,153,817 for ELECTRONIC APPARATUS SYSTEM INCLUDING AN EXPANSION DEVICE REMOVABLY CONNECTED TO A REMOVABLE BATTERY PACK issued to Hosoi et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,200,883 for PORTABLE COMPUTER HAVING AN EXTERNAL BATTERY MOUNTING PORTION AND OPTIONAL DEVICE MOUNTING PORTION issued to Kobayashi, U.S. Pat. No. 5,553,294 for PORTABLE COMPUTER POWERED BY RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES issued to Nanno et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,633,572 for BACK-UP POWER SUPPLY WITH REPLACEABLE BATTERY PACK issued to Steele et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,626 for BATTERY CONNECTING DEVICE FOR A COMPUTER SYSTEM AND A METHOD OF SWITCHING BATTERIES issued to Odaohara, U.S. Pat. No. 5,786,984 for MODULAR PORTABLE PERSONAL COMPUTER issued to Bonardi et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,867,007 for SELECTION CIRCUIT FOR DUAL BATTERIES IN A BATTERY POWERED ELECTRONIC DEVICE issued to Kim.
In a portable computer not requiring any additional battery casing, let us suppose that a first battery pack has been consumed. At this time, the portable computer shall require either a recharging of the consumed first battery pack or a second battery pack which is compatible with the portable computer. This requirement can cause inconvenience and economic hardship to the user. The user either must spend the time to recharge the first battery pack, or must spend money to purchase a second battery pack which is specifically compatible with that particular portable computer.
While the above-referenced related art provides advantages, I note that such related art fails to adequately provide a portable computer which can conveniently use either a specific battery pack or ordinary batteries.